Meet the RACs

Paula White
Executive Director of the Regional Achievement Centers
Paula White serves as the Department of Education's Chief Turnaround Officer. In this role, she directs and oversees the work of the NJDOE's six Regional Achievement Centers (RACs), which support more than 200 Priority and Focus schools statewide in improving the academic outcomes of their students. Most recently, she managed a whole-school reform effort across a portfolio of high-poverty, low-performing public schools in New York City. Earlier in her career, Ms. White completed the yearlong Building Excellent Schools fellowship. She then became the founder and executive director of Newark Legacy Charter School, a college-preparatory public charter school. Prior to her work in school leadership and management, Ms. White taught third through eighth grades, leading her students to outstanding academic achievement. During her time in the classroom, she also served on the editorial board of a journal published by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), worked as a national writing consultant, supervised field placements of pre-service teachers, and authored a professional article related to teacher practice. Ms. White holds a B.A. in Child Development from Spelman College and an M. Ed. in Educational Leadership from Columbia University.